LEVIKE-project

LEVIKE (Network-Based Higher Education – Case Lapland) is a European Social Fund (ESF) supported project. Its aim is to promote the study opportunities offered by higher education institutions in Lapland to local learners. The project partners include
Kemi-Tornio Polytechnic, Rovaniemi Polytechnic, University of Lapland, and the Finnish Virtual Polytechnic. The project is a part of the implementation of the Provincial College of Lapland.

The project promotes new culture of distance learning and network-based education (NBE). It develops educational services in the province of Lapland, and aims at providing an example of the development process in sparsely populated regions. The duration of the project is 3 years: from September 1, 2004 to May 31, 2007.

The project aims at promoting the study opportunities of the Lappish distance learners by:

Research

The University of Lapland’s Faculty of Education’s Centre for Media Pedagogy and Finnish Virtual Polytechnic are responsible for conducting the research. The objective of the research is to develop the teaching-studying-learning (TSL) methods used in distance education and network-based education (NBE).

The Centre for Media Pedagogy coordinates the following research:

1.Enhancing the quality of network-based education through the production of digital video clipsResearcher: Päivi Hakkarainen

The objective of the research was to enhance the quality of network-based education (NBE) through producing educational video clips with students as an action research
case study process. The research focused on the following questions: How does the production of digital video clips with university students support their meaningful learning? How can the use of student-generated digital video clips support online students’ meaningful learning? The research comprised an action research case study and a design-based
research, both realized at the University of Lapland . In both studies, students participated in the production of the digital video clips.

In the first study the video clips were produced in collaboration with Senior Assistant of
Administrative Sciences Tarja Saarelainen, students of Administrative Sciences at the Faculty of Social Sciences, and technical support personnel. In the video clips the teacher and the students acted out various co-operation situations related to working life. The
production process was realized as part of a Network Management course. During the project data processing, data analysis, and presentation of the results was performed.

In the second study two Media Education students at the University of Lapland’s Faculty of Education produced digital video clips as part of their Educational Use of ICT
studies. The production process was commissioned by the researcher, who will use the clips as learning material on the Supporting Meaningful Learning through Producing and Using Digital Videos course realized on the fall of 2006. The research therefore also investigated whether the “students as producers of DV learning material” model has practical applicability for the Media Education curriculum. For the videos the students interviewed educational program production experts at the YLE - Finnish Broadcasting Company. During the Levike research the research process was fully implemented, from planning to presenting the results.

The objective of the case study was to integrate simulation tools, modern network-based solutions that support learning, and traditional and modern digital
learning materials into a coherent context for teaching-studying-learning activity in typical university-level study. The case study focused on the pedagogy (didactics) of technology
education. The most important focus was to develop a pedagogical model
entitled "Network oriented study with simulations (NOSS)". This model supports teaching and learning in simulation-based studies of technology education particularly in the laboratory setting using a computer-based tool, termed the web-orientation agent (WOA). During the project data analysis and presentation of the results were performed.

3.Developing, implementing, and evaluating the models and methods used in network-based education
Researcher: Saila Vaara

The study concentrated on teachers’ pedagogical models and methods on network-based courses, and evaluated how the implementation of the models succeeds in practice. Research data was collected from Kemi-Tornio and Rovaniemi polytechnics. Data collection was based on triangulation, including theme interviews of teachers and a
questionnaire delivered to students. In addition, participatory observation was used as a data collection method at Rovaniemi Polytechnic. Because the difference between the pedagogical models and methods has not been clearly defined, the idea was to clarify the
difference and pull together models and methods. During the project the data processing, data analysis, and presentation of the results were performed.

The aim of this study is to develop the pedagogical model of Co-Creative
Learning Processes (CCLP) as a part of teaching and learning processes. Creativity can be seen as a form of knowledge creation in which collaborative activity, information and communication technologies and network-based education (NBE) may offer unrestricted opportunities. The model integrates the recent views on creativity and its role in learning
processes, as well as sociocultural views on teaching and learning. In addition, playfulness, imagination and narrativity have an important role in the pedagogical CCLP model. The main research questions are: How do pupils experience studying when the activities are based on teaching methods that support collaborative and creative processes? How do teachers experience the supervision of co-creative learning processes in teaching?

Kangas, M., & Kultima, A. (Accepted). Co-creative learning processes in school settings - A case of the game concept of a "Different World". Paper to be presented at the EARLI, JURE 9th conference, June 30-July 4, 2006, Tartu, Estonia.